MASON, Ohio — The 2025 Cincinnati Open wrapped up Sunday with two historic championship matches, as American rising star Coco Gauff captured her second Western & Southern Open women’s singles title, while France’s Arthur Fils stunned the field to claim his first ATP Masters 1000 crown.
In the women’s championship, Gauff delivered a dominant straight-sets victory over compatriot Jessica Pegula, winning 6-2, 6-4. The final marked a milestone for the tournament: it was the first all-American women’s championship match at Cincinnati in 56 years, last achieved in 1969? No, the historic pairing was last seen 1970, when Rosie Casals defeated Nancy Richey for the title. Both Gauff and Pegula earned their spot in the historic final through impressive semifinal runs Saturday: Pegula upset defending champion Iga Swiatek, while Gauff defeated Czech qualifier Sara Bejlek to advance.
Gauff, who first claimed the Cincinnati title in 2023 with a win over Karolina Muchova, got off to a blistering start in Sunday’s final, racing out to a 5-0 lead in the opening set before closing it out 6-2. Though Pegula rallied to pull within one game at 4-5 in the second set, Gauff held firm to secure the win, converting five of six break point opportunities across the match. The result leveled their head-to-head career record at five wins apiece, following Gauff’s victory over Pegula in the 2024 Wuhan Open final.
Reflecting on her win after the match, Gauff highlighted the dramatic growth she has made in her game over the past year. “I think it was a long journey, but I’m happy,” she said. “I think it’s night and day, the player I was last year to now. I don’t think that this is an indicator that I’m going to do well in New York. Just knowing the quality of tennis I produced this week, hopefully I can carry that experience forward to the US Open.” Gauff dropped just one set across the entire tournament, winning all five of her matches in straight sets.
Pegula, who fell to Aryna Sabalenka in the 2024 Cincinnati final, praised Gauff’s consistent high-level play. “I thought she just played at a really high level and didn’t really have many dips,” Pegula said. “I didn’t really think I played bad. The more you construct the point against her, the worse it is because she almost likes to run. It was tough today. A dangerous, confident Coco is heading to New York, that’s for sure.”
In the men’s final, 22-year-old Fils made history of his own, outlasting American Frances Tiafoe 6-3, 1-6, 6-0 to lift his first Masters 1000 trophy. The match itself marked a landmark for men’s professional tennis: it was the first time two Black players have faced off in an ATP Masters 1000 final. Fils is only the third Black man to win a Masters 1000 title, joining American Ben Shelton, a two-time Canadian Open champion, and France’s Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, who won titles in Paris (2008) and Canada (2014). He is also the youngest French champion in Masters 1000 history, and just the second French man to claim the Cincinnati crown, following Guy Forget’s 1991 victory.
Fils’ run to the title comes after a challenging 12 months that saw him miss the 2024 French Open with a hip injury, face early exits in lead-in events this summer, and endure outside speculation that his career momentum had stalled. “It’s been a tough last year. I didn’t play the French Open due to a hip injury. I lost early in Washington. People think that I’m done. But here we are. I got the title,” Fils said after the win. “It feels very good to have a trophy next to me, especially a Masters 1000. Never won one before. You just have to stay positive and find a way to make it work. Being positive is going to help me in the next weeks at the US Open.”
The match followed a familiar pattern to Fils’ tournament run: he jumped out to an early lead in the first set, winning 12 of 13 opening points to build a 3-0 advantage and closed out the set 6-3. Tiafoe turned the tide in the second set, jumping to his own 3-0 lead and rolling to a 6-1 win to force a deciding third set. Before the third set, Tiafoe received treatment for tightness in his upper left leg and lower back, though he downplayed the injury after the match. Tiafoe was looking to become the first American man to win the Cincinnati title since Andy Roddick in 2006, and was appearing in his second consecutive Cincinnati final after falling to Jannik Sinner in 2024.
Despite Tiafoe saving three championship points in the final game, Fils closed out the match to secure the win. The Frenchman served 11 aces and won 71% of his first-serve points, improving his 2025 record to an undefeated 10-0 in deciding sets, and 8-0 against American opponents. Fils also beat Tiafoe in their only previous meeting, a three-set clash at the 2024 Miami Open.
“I’m going to have two Cincinnati finals trophies at the crib,” Tiafoe joked after the match. “I wish they were both champion ones. Losing on Sunday sucks. I’ve had a tough summer, but I was able to play five great matches and beat quality players. My hip bothered me a little bit, but that’s neither here nor there. It’s not about how I feel. I’ll be alright in a week for the US Open.”
As the final hard-court warm-up event for the US Open, the Cincinnati results have set the stage for what is expected to be a thrilling final Grand Slam of the season, with both new champions heading into New York with renewed momentum.